The Prince George Cougars have a new logo, and none of the Cougar players who will sport that snarling cat on their chests will be moving as fast as Jerry Gascon.
His will be ripping along at 110 kilometres an hour on the hood and fenders of a stock car.
Gascon might have a hard time keeping that new crest looking pristine when he's trading paint in tight traffic on the Prince George Auto Racing Association stock car circuit but he'll do his best.
"I've got a lot of touch-up paint and friends who are body men so I'll keep this car looking as good as it looks today," said Gascon, the 2014 PGARA street stock series champion, who brought his car to CN Centre for Wednesday's logo unveiling.
"I'm so proud of it and couldn't be prouder to be associated with the Cougars. That Cougar just pops, it looks so good."
The logo features a large 'C' which wraps around the head of a Cougar with its jaw open and teeth bared. Mike Doran of Splash Media designed the new logo. Splash has been involved with the Cougars' branding for 10 years and worked on previous logo redesigns in 2005 and 2008.
The jersey includes the Prince George Cougars name stitched under the crest. The team will retain its traditional red, black and white colour scheme and design.
"I like it - it's clean, it's crisp, I think it's very striking," said season-ticket holder Rob Bodner. "I wasn't sure when I heard they were changing if I would like it or not. Now that I see it, I like it. I think it's a big positive step forward."
Bodner commented on a slide projected during Wednesday's presentation which showed how the Cougars logo compares with that of the rest of the 21 teams in the WHL.
"By far, it's head and shoulders above what the rest have - clean and distinctive," Bodner said. "It's right. I've got about six Cougar jerseys at home and I'll be adding the new ones to the collection."
EDGEPRO Sports, the local ownership group that bought the Cougars from Rick Brodsky in April 2014, wanted to rebrand the Cougars when the deal was finalized but there wasn't enough time to get approval from the league and register the changes with Reebok-CCM, producers of the league's jerseys.
"The logo is something we wanted to do right out of the gate and we were working on concepts before we even got ownership but there were deadlines that had passed before we took ownership so we couldn't do it for last season," said Cougars president Greg Pocock.
"Even this season's design, we weren't able to go as dramatic as we wanted and that was part of the reason why we stayed with the same colour scheme, just so we made sure it got through and got done professionally and properly. We're really proud of it. We think Mike's done a great job. We think it's unique and identifiable and I think it's going to become a fan favourite."
Cougar forwards Brad Morrison and Brogan O'Brien, both Prince George natives, walked onto the stage wearing their new jerseys and both figure the team got it right.
"It's cool, it's exciting for everyone to get a new logo and with the new owners and everything it fits in perfectly," said O'Brien. "I think it looks a lot better than the old one. It will be real exciting to see what they look like on the ice."
"We've had the same logo for a few years now and I think it's a good thing for the players and the fans and everyone in the organization to change," said Morrison.
Head coach Mark Holick also approves.
"I like it," said Holick. "Branding's important, it gives our team an identity, something new and fresh, and I think they did a great job."
The Cougars also introduced new employees Melissa Layton (ticket sales manager) and Gary Samis (corporate sales manager) to the crowd of about 250 at CN Centre.
Layton was part of the 2015 Canada Winter Games committee as manager of the Games sponsorship program. Samis has a 35-year background in sales and marketing and is in his fourth year as organizer of the Cougars alumni golf tournament, which has raised $133,000 for the Spirit of the North Healthcare Foundation.
Based on the cost of a season ticket, seat prices for individual games next season will work out to about $6 each for kids, $11 for students/seniors, and $15 for adults. The team will be marketing 10 feature games (up from five last year), which will include discounted rates for merchandise, food and beverages during those games.
The Cats open their main training camp on Friday, Aug. 28 and will play one home exhibition game against the Kamloops Blazers on a yet-to-be-scheduled date during the Vancouver Canucks training camp, Sept. 18-20. The Cougars open the 2015-16 season at home against the Everett Silvertips, Friday Sept. 25.
Pocock informed the crowd that unlike last season, when 17 of their 36 home games were midweek games, most Cougar home games in 2015-16 will be played on weekends.
The new logo will also be adopted by the Cariboo Cougars major midget team and the Prince George Minor Hockey Association rep teams for next season.
